National Caregiving Awareness Month: A show of support: Observance shines spotlight on many who toil in obscurity

Observance shines spotlight on many who toil in obscurity

1:42 AM,
Nov. 23, 2012

Bethany Carroll, left, and Rachel Best, are some of the students from Alabama Christian Academy helping to create Caregivers Resource kits at the AARP Alabama State Office on Friday, Nov. 16, 2012, in Montgomery, Ala.. (Montgomery Advertiser, Lloyd Gallman)

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Former first lady Rosalynn Carter once said there are four types of people in this world: caregivers, people who were caregivers, people who are going to be caregivers, and people who are going to need a caregiver.

"So, it's like death and taxes and caregiving - you're going to have to deal with it at some point in your life," Carter said.

More than 44 million Americans care for an adult family member or friend, according to the AARP. In Alabama, there are an estimated 850,000 caregivers providing eight million hours of unpaid care for their loved ones with disability and illnesses, data from ...